Pocket Radar readings

[Shawn]

I live in Washington and every winter, rainy falls and springs. My readings go down, as much as 4 mph.

How much does weather play on the Doppler effect reading correctly? Anyone else see changes?

 

[ArmWhip]

I have never noticed any seasonal variation but then I have never bothered with any type of calibration either. What measurement are you using as a baseline for comparison? My PR matches the speedometer in my car almost perfectly.

 

[4Martini]

Interesting- my daughter takes lesson in an unheated environment and we always thought her pitching coach’s pocket radar seems a little low. Plus she always makes big jumps when it warms up in spring. The other day her team coach radared them at the heated facility and she was constantly 2-3 mph faster than at her lesson.

 

[Shawn]

Interesting- my daughter takes lesson in an unheated environment and we always thought her pitching coach’s pocket radar seems a little low. Plus she always makes big jumps when it warms up in spring. The other day her team coach radared them at the heated facility and she was constantly 2-3 mph faster than at her lesson.

Yes we pitch in an unheated cage often, sometimes we get the gym.

 

[Vertigo]

I’m just guessing (and taking a huge guess) here but maybe it has more to do with the batteries in the colder temps? Where do you keep it when you’re not using it? Have the batteries been exposed to extreme temps during their lifetime?

 

[Tazman]

Yes we pitch in an unheated cage often, sometimes we get the gym.

Is it possible the pitcher actually slows down from the tightness of the cold or being off-season versus the radar being off?

 

[Shawn]

I’m just guessing (and taking a huge guess) here but maybe it has more to do with the batteries in the colder temps? Where do you keep it when you’re not using it? Have the batteries been exposed to extreme temps during their lifetime?

No, I take it out of my drawer and into my pocket.

 

[Shawn]

Is it possible the pitcher actually slows down from the tightness of the cold or being off-season versus the radar being off?

Absolutely. When it finally warms up in spring and into summer pitchers pick up speed. When it’s colder you don’t throw as hard. Cold = tight Warm = loose

Just wondering what others in a climate see the same reading fluctuations.

 

[Northball]

I live in Washington and every winter, rainy falls and springs. My readings go down, as much as 4 mph.

How much does weather play on the Doppler effect reading correctly? Anyone else see changes?

Going down this rabbit hole, I don't think variation is from the radar. One experiment studied bats (the flying rodent kind) that flew around using echolocation less in warmer temperatures than cool, suggesting it was more reliable in warmer conditions.
Another study found negligible difference in readings of liquid flowing through pipes at different temperatures.
I think you'd need a very controlled setting to show the radar varies. I'd lean toward the pitchers being the variable coming off-season and being in the cold.

 

[Vertigo]

No, I take it out of my drawer and into my pocket.

I’m guessing that it might not work as effectively in cooler temps going by this - again this is one of the many reasons I miss Pattar - he’d know much better than anyone if it actually had an effect.

https://data.energizer.com/pdfs/alkaline_appman.pdf